The Awakening
by Teefa and Co
Summary: AU during the Yggdrasil segment. Jet pushes Virginia out of the way, and is infected with the nanomachines instead. But, being who and what he is, his symptoms are very different. JV
1. Troubled Rescue

****

Troubled Rescue

"I retain the power of Hydades, yet I am cursed by Filgaia. . ." lamented Leehalt, "I need cleansing by the Panakeia Fluid. In the eyes of Filgaia, we seem to be alien elements creeping inside its body. Are we one day destined to be expelled. . .? NOOOOO! I will not allow that to happen!"

With that, the mad scientist fired a strange arrow strait at the leader of his enemies, Virginia Maxwell. The boy next to her, called Jet Enduro by his friends, watched the horror on the girl's face. She was too scared to move, so she wouldn't be able to avoid the blow when it came. If this arrow contained a deadly poison or something to that extend, she might not survive after getting hit.

Jet didn't want to see that happen. He jumped at her, pushing her out of harm's way. But the arrow penetrated his arm instead. The boy fell to the floor, in obvious pain.

  
"Jet! Oh Guardians let him be ok. He took that hit to save me. I never asked him to do such a selfless thing for me. He deserves to live, so save his life, please," Virginia begged.

Jet began moaning, "Virginia, please don't worry. As long as nothing happened to you, I can die easily. Just keep on moving forward. You're the only one who can stop the Prophets."

Leehalt listened to their conversation. 'She calls the boy "Jet". That's the same name as Elliot's son. Foolish boy that kid, just as foolish as his father. Ironic I run into another boy with the same name. He even kind of looks the same, wait a minute. Could it be, the Filgaia Sample? If it is, then we have an even bigger problem on our hands. I wonder how the nanomachines will affect him though?'

Leehalt didn't have to wait too long for confirmation. For soon after, Jet got back up. But there was something different about him. For one thing, he had pulled Virginia close to him, as if to shield her from any attack. Granted, he'd saved her before, but never had he protected her like this.

"No harm will come to Virginia," Jet stated, quite frankly, "If you try to lay one finger on her, you are going to regret the day you were born. So I'd suggest you surrender now, or die."

'What has happened to him? He usually isn't this nice. Have I done something to change him, or does it have something to do with that vessel Leehalt launched at me?' she pondered.

Gallows Caradine, the Baskar Priest, asked the boy, "Is there something wrong with you Jet? You're not acting like yourself. What happened to the 'I don't like babysitting' attitude you give her?"

  
Jet looked at him. "But I do like to take care of her. This woman, she means more to me than life itself. No one will take her away from me, even if I have to fight to keep it like this."

  
"Maybe you should lie down Jet," Clive Winslett, a sniper, comments, "Gallows is right, this is a side of you that we've never seen before. I think whatever was in that canister got to you in some way."

"Foolish Drifter, how long did it take you to figure that out. That canister was loaded with precious nanomachines, meant to force the body into respiratory paralysis. Meaning, a normal human being would have fallen to the ground, convulsing from their shortness of breaths. But this boy hasn't done so. I have no confirmation on why it is so, but I have a good idea that I would like to test. Boy, come here. If you come with me, I will do no harm to that girl. Stay, and I might kill her," Leehalt threatened.

At that moment, two gunshots fired off at Leehalt. A voice from the shadows called out, "Those empty threats will do nothing to him. His desire is to be with her, and he will fight to the death if anyone tries to separate them. You will not be able to get him to come, unless you take her. But he will not allow you to take her in the first place, so you're back at square one anyway."

In came Werner Maxwell, Virginia's long lost father. He has his duel pistols aimed right at Leehalt, who isn't too happy to see his old colleague at the moment. Heck, he wouldn't be happy to see Werner at any moment, a direct result of a love triangle back when they were much younger. That story, as well as many others, were a part of Virginia's history that she was never told about.

Leehalt glared at his old rival. "Werner Maxwell, so you too survived the Yggdrasil accident. But what business could you have here? My theory as to who the boy is must be correct, and I gather that you must be the reason that he was rescued from certain death before his birth."

"Leave him alone," Virginia screamed, "I don't know what you know about Jet's origins, but he doesn't need you to tease him about them. No matter what I find out, Jet will always be Jet to me."

"Foolish sentiment, it will only get you killed, girl. After the boy is taken out, I will be free to rip you to shreds. You should feel honored though, a future ruler is going to take you out," Leehalt said.

Werner told him, "And I would like you to leave my daughter alone. As well as her bodyguard. They don't need you annoying them. If you try anything Leehalt, I will shoot you dead here and now."

Leehalt was surprised. "Daughter?! You mean this little brat is your child? I can see the resemblance between the two of you, right down to being a thorn in my side."

"Temper Leehalt," Werner replied, "Remember, you are greatly outnumbered."

  
Leehalt could see the logic in that. So he fled, leaving behind his servant, Balzas. The little demon fought with the four Drifters, but was no match for them. Soon, he was defeated.

"Daddy, what has happened to Jet? You know who he really is, yet you keep it from him. Why don't you tell him the truth? Is there anything we can do to help him?" Virginia asked.

Werner informed her, "The truth might make you all a little distressed at the moment. But there is something we can do. He needs to just wait for his body to circulate out all of the nanomachines inside of it. Once that happens, the link to his other persona will close, and he'll be himself again. For the time being, let's all go to my cabin. You can rest there, and plan your strategies."

So they all left Nidhogg Pass, and arrived at a place they never would dream had existed. It was a world full of lush forests, with a lake in the middle. It was an amazement to the others in the party, but Jet acted as if he saw such a sight every day since he had been born.

- - - -

****

Teefa's Last Words…

This came from a conversation with my cousin one night. I asked her what would happen, and she replied that his powers would help him to dispel the nanomachines. After all, they shut down both the Yggdrasil and Deus Ex Machina, and gave Leehalt a really painful end. But then again, Lu was half asleep when I asked her.


	2. Truth Hurts

****

Truth Hurts

"Ok Daddy," demanded Virginia, "Now, spill the truth. Who is Jet really? Why do you hide it from him? Please, I need to know so I can help him out. I don't like seeing him suffer like this."

  
Jet was sleeping on the bed, at Virginia's insistence. She did have to promise, however, that she wouldn't leave his side, so he could hear if she was in trouble, and he would be able to wake up and fight off whomever or whatever had wanted to hurt her. With her promise, he went to sleep.

"Are you sure you want to know? It isn't the sort of thing a person would be too happy to find out about themselves or one of their friends. I made a vow long ago to never tell the boy, to let him just be happy as he is, going on journeys to find treasures and Gella," Werner told her.

Virginia reminded him, "Gallows and Clive are blocking your way out. They will not move until you tell me the truth. Jet may be distressed by what he finds out, but he still needs to know what is going on with his body, and why he doesn't have any memories of the past, even if he says it's not important."

Werner sighed, and took a deep breath. Virginia certainly had her mother's spirit, even if she had inherited his looks. This was just the sort of thing Ekatrina would have done in the same situation. "Jet is part of a top secret experiment that we began to test the Filgaia Theory. The theory states that, just as we are living organisms, Filgaia is also alive. We began to shape the essence of Filgaia into a form, until we had managed to trap it into a test tube. Then, we began debating on what form the sample would take. I think it was my friend Elliot who first proposed creating a human being. So we began to create a special fluid made of metal, and some of the essence of Filgaia, hoping that by adding it to what we'd already collected, we could shape a human form out of it. We were ultimately successful on this front. The seven of us called this new life Adam, Adam Kadmon. But we needed DNA, as well as human organs to finish the job. The hardest part was thinking of how to find a donor for the project."

"Daddy," Virginia whispered, "What did you do next? If this 'sample' you speak of is indeed Jet, then you must have found a donor from somewhere. So how did you do it?"

  
"We had no choice in the matter. You see, Elliot had a young son named Jet, who was about seven years older than you. His mother had died when he was born, so he lived with his father at all times in the lab. Jet overheard his father and myself talking about what to do, and decided to use his own DNA. Organs, he said, would come later. But then something happened. We never solved this mystery, but while transferring his DNA to the sample, Jet somehow was killed. Although never proven, we think that he might have been under too much stress and had a heart attack. I remember how Elliot grieved after that had happened. He showed up to work each day for a week completely drunk. Poor guy was devastated after his wife's death, and now he had lost his son as well. Elliot told us to use Jet's organs for the sample as well, since he knew his boy would have wanted to help his father out. After that, the man began to think of Adam as his own son. Soon after, Yggdrasil exploded in an overload of energy. I managed to rescue the Filgaia Sample, knowing that he didn't deserve to die for the sins the seven of us had committed. For the next five years, I devoted myself to making sure he finished his growth. Finally, five years ago, he was born. But I didn't feel right using the name we had decided on. In memory of Elliot and his son, I gave the boy the name Jet Enduro, and taught him how to survive in the Wastelands. I thought he could have a normal life, never having to hear about his past, or his powers. But then all of this happened, and threw a monkey wrench into the whole plan," Werner finished.

Virginia asked her father, "What can I do to help Jet out? I want to make him happy, this side of him is just due to an overload of nanomachines, it's not how he really is. He's probably miserable."

  
Werner shook his head. "On the contrary, this is his true self. The self you always see is no more than a mask he made to keep himself from feeling vulnerable. I know, I've watched him for the past five years, trying to see exactly what kind of life he is making for himself. Jet cares greatly for you 

Virginia, he's always trying to protect you from harm. Poor boy has been all alone for so long, that it hurts him to see the people who care about him to leave. Maybe I should have stuck with him instead of following him around. That way, he'd never have had to put up this mask."

  
"I'm going to tell him," Virginia said, "He deserves to know who he really is. That's what his real problem is, he's got no memories. So he has to cover up that void in his life with transparent dreams of becoming rich. If he knew why he has no memories, he might feel a whole lot better."

  
"That might help, I never thought about it like that. But what will help Jet out even more, is to know that you still count him as a friend, even though you know what he really is," Werner added.

Virginia exclaims, "Of course I still care about him! Whether you're a human or not doesn't matter, only that you're someone I can call a friend. You shouldn't treat a person differently just because of some factor that he or she is unable to help, like not being human. People who think like that are just plain stupid." She takes another look at Jet, who is sleeping peacefully.

Werner smiles at his daughter. "You've got a kind heart Virginia. That is why I know that you'll be able to protect Jet from his past. I must go now, go to the Yggdrasil. You may follow whenever you want to, once Jet has awakened. We might just need his help on this one."

  
Werner put on his hat and left. Virginia watched him walk away, just like she had ten years ago. But this time things were different. This time she understood his motives, and this time he wouldn't have to face the problems before him alone. She would see to that.

- - - -

****

Sky's Corner

Is it just me, or does Jet's real last name sound like the name of a Digimon? No really, they all end in -mon so I just thought of it. But when I told Teefa, she began making jokes about Digimon Jet being tamed by Virginia. Then she got Lufia to draw it. I should've never said anything.

****


	3. At Yggdrasil

****

At Yggdrasil

The second Jet woke up, Virginia asked if she could talk to him. Naturally, with his new persona, he was happy to oblige. So she told him everything her father had told her concerning the boy's past. Virginia hoped he wouldn't take things the wrong way, and push her away from him.

"I just want you to know," she told him, "I don't think of you as just a machine. You'll always be Jet to me, the friend who has saved my life and guarded my back ever since we met one another."

"Thank you Virginia. I needed to hear that about now. You're the best friend I've ever had. In the past, no one has treated me with the level of kindness that you show to me on a daily basis. I only hope that we can continue on like this forever," he replied, taking the girl in his arms.

Maybe they would have kissed then. But at that moment, Gallows ran in screaming, "Let's get going you two, we've got to head on out to Yggdrasil before the Prophets are able to fulfil their scheme. There's no time not for goofing around anymore, we've got to get moving."

Virginia sighed at this missed opportunity. 'I don't know what's the weirdest thing around here, Jet being nice, me being attracted to him, or Gallows being serious. Wait a minute, did I just say "Me being attracted to him"? I don't think of Jet like that, he's my friend and no more. But why do I get the feeling that I'm only fooling myself when I say things like that?'

Her question went unanswered, as Gallows began pushing the two of them out the door. It was as if his personality had been rewired as well today. Or it could have something to do with his deciding to embrace his lineage and destiny in order to find his freedom. Either or could work for an explanation.

The four Drifters headed towards Yggdrasil. Although it was shaped like a huge tree, you could very well tell that human hands had created it. For the trunk and leaves were all made out of a strange metal that seemed to be harder than diamond. Shortly after finding Yggdrasil, Clive discovered a door that lead into the inner sanctums. So the four of them went inside, not knowing what they'd find.

Once inside of the system, the view could take a person's breath away. Every corner had been taken up by machines of some sort. Virginia was curious as to what each one did, but she didn't take time out to investigate. Instead, she kept close to Jet's side, as they continued onwards. It kind of felt nice having Jet close to her, protecting her like she was a medieval princess and he her knight. But just thinking about things like that made the young Drifter blush furiously.

* * *

Not to long after, they ran into Melody. She was supposed to be standing guard, but it appeared as if she'd gotten bored and begun applying a new coat of makeup. It disgusted Virginia how the women who were completely fake seemed to get the guys all of the time, while people like her were always ridiculed by those women, being called ugly, and were overlooked by the male gender. But she knew that it wasn't always true. Certainly Jet wasn't turning head over heels at Melody's appearance.

"The game is up now," stated Clive, "We are going to shut this place down, and keep you from accomplishing your mad schemes of evolving Filgaia into the body of a demon."

  
"How come my charms don't work on anybody but the big dufus in the corner? I could see the boy, he's no more than a machine, but certainly a man like you should start falling for me. What is it about you people that make you such a weird bunch of fools?" she asked them

Virginia screamed, "Don't call Jet a machine!!!! He's not just a machine, he's my friend."

  
Melody laughed. "So, you're Werner's little brat. Go figure, he always was a man full of useless sentiment. But that boy is no more than a machine, he is incapable of feeling any emotions whatsoever. There is no way he can care about you, so why do you care about him? You'd do much better if you would allow yourself to evolve into a more beautiful body like I did. Then, the men will be lining up to ask you out on a date. They'll all have been captivated by your perfect beauty."

"Virginia is not that type of woman," Jet informed her, "She has a pure heart and soul, unlike yours, which is ridden with all of the negative sides of the human spectrum. I may not be human, but I know that her beauty is the one that I prefer over your lovely appearance."

"That's just typical, Werner probably programmed you to fall in love with his wretched child, knowing there would be no other way for her to get someone to care about her, as she's just as ugly as a newborn animal," sneered Melody. She began to laugh at her cruel words.

  
Jet whispered, "Virginia, don't listen to her. Remember, it was the ugly little duckling that grew up to become a beautiful swan in the end. Besides, you're much prettier than she is on the outside too."

Now Melody was really mad. "I am much more beautiful than that ugly little wretch!" With that, she struck out at Jet, unleashing her full fury upon the poor young boy.

But it was Virginia who stopped the attack, by blocking it with a Refrigerate spell. That gave Jet the chance to use his Gattling attack on the Prophetess. Twenty-four rounds of ammunition were fired at Melody, knocking her down. She didn't seem to take that beating quite well though.

"You little brats," she called out, "I'll make you pay, the next time we meet will be your last." She teleported out of the room, going somewhere to lick her wounds perhaps. Or maybe she wanted to fix the makeup that had begun to run due to the stress of the battle.

"We must press on. Or else Filgaia might be doomed," Virginia stated. She ran through the door, followed by the others. They continued on through the Yggdrasil, their was unobstructed for awhile. But some time later, they ran into Malik, and they couldn't believe what he was doing.

He muttered, "So, you've defeated Melody. But you'll never defeat me. I must continue to live, in order to make sure my mamma's memories can be restored to these clones I have created.

- - - -

****

Teefa's Last Words…

Well, now we're in the dungeon. With a more defensive Jet. How kawaii!


	4. Further Up We Go

****

Further Up We Go

"You're a real sicko," Gallows stated, "You're trying to play with the dead. Once a person is dead, they return to Filgaia in order to live happily in the afterlife. Do you even think that your mother might just be content living there, with all of the other people she loved who are dead?"

  
"I must bring mother back. I promised myself long ago that I would accomplish this. But for some reason, she is unable to remember me, or stimulate life functions," Malik informed him.

Jet said, "The dead are meant to stay dead. Otherwise, everyone would try to bring them back, and we would cause havoc all over Filgaia. Imagine, all the people you thought were gone forever just coming back into your life. Many people would be a little bit freaked out over the whole thing."

Malik was getting mad. "You're one to talk. Look at you. You are a machine that we created as a test of our theories. But you're practically a reborn version of Elliot's son WHO WAS DEAD!"

"Maybe I have his DNA," Jet told Malik, "And maybe Werner bestowed me with his name. But we are still two totally different people. I am not the same Jet Enduro you knew years ago. I don't even know exactly what kind of person he was, nor do I have any of his memories."

"Well then, if you want to refuse me so adamantly, we will have to fight. I'll protect my mother with my life if needed be, until I find away to restore her to her former self," Malik vowed.

The fight was on. Virginia cast Refrigerate, Jet used Fragile, Gallows slowed him down with a Decelerate, and Clive attacked. With Malik's speed reduced, Jet switched over to attacking on the next turn, while Gallows cast Petrify. Virginia and Clive stuck with what they were doing.

With all of them working together, it wasn't too long before Malik lay on the floor, wounded. He began to laugh. Virginia asked him, "What is so funny? You lost to us, so why are you laughing?"

Malik stopped just long enough to explain it to her. "You see, you fools may have defeated me, but you'll never be able to win against Leehalt. Go on ahead, he's just up ahead. I'll be watching, waiting to see your screams of terror as he rips your bodies to shreds with his powers." Then he started laughing again. He continued his insane laughing even as he was teleporting away to safety.

* * *

The group continued onwards. Soon after, they came upon Leehalt arguing with Werner. Virginia hushed the others, she wanted to hear what her father and Leehalt were fighting about.

"You fool!" exclaimed Werner, "Summoning a demon to evolve Filgaia! All you are doing is spelling an end for all life on this planet. Maybe you'll survive, but you'll be the ruler of nothing if everyone around here is killed by your demonic purge. We made a mistake in trying to use Yggdrasil to save Filgaia, and I won't let you to make an even worse one." He aimed his duel pistols at his enemy.

"Daddy, we're here to help you out. You must shut down the generator, only you'll know the way to do it. Let us handle Leehalt for you," Virginia yelled. She too brought up her pistols. Behind her, she saw Jet bring Airget-lahm into the ready position as well. Clive's rifle and Gallows's shotgun were then aimed at Leehalt. The four Drifters got ready for the battle with their ultimate enemy.

Werner called, "Thank you for your help. I know you can do it. Show him the true might of your powers Virginia." With that, he ran out to try and shut off the Yggdrasil generator.

Leehalt seethed at her resolve. "How can a tomboy like you be Ekatrina's daughter? Your wretched father did a really bad job of raising you. He might have been a brilliant scientist, but his skills for taking care of mundane tasks like this were way under par."

  
"You knew my mother?!" exclaimed Virginia, "Were you and my father good friends in the past."

  
"Quite the opposite, we were rivals. I hated and despised your father for years. As well as your mother. In fact, I hate your whole family, little brat. Now you die," he screamed.

But before he could try and hit her, Jet unleashed another of his Gattling attacks. Leehalt was hurt pretty badly. The boy told the Prophet, "You are going to leave her alone, or answer to me."

"So, little Adam is in love," muttered Leehalt, "You can have your little girlfriend, you're going to need someone's arms to lie in when you're both dead on the floor of this tower. Janus, come here."

The wicked knight entered the room. With his reprieve here, Leehalt teleported off. No way was he going to put his own neck on the line, not when he could use his minions to do it for him.

"Coward, fight your own battles," Virginia yelled. But she knew he would not hear her, many rooms had come between the two of them by now. She had to concentrate on defeating Janus, so they could go and find out where her father went, and help him out if needed be.

  
Janus said, "I've already heard the news from my quote unquote betters. So, the boy is a top-secret android that those blokes were working on years ago. No more than a tin can like Asgard."

Virginia was angered by his words. "Jet is not just an android. He's my friend, and I will not allow anyone to say such mean things about him." With that, she imitated Jet's usual angry outburst attack, and fired off her Gattling attack. Ten shots later, Janus was badly injured, but laughing insanely.

"I am the ruler of this world," he began, "All of you puny beings will bow before me. I will not die until that is fulfilled." With that, an explosion began to occur, as he self-destructed in front of their eyes.

"That'll teach him to try to insult Jet like that," Virginia stated. But she immediately wondered why she'd said that. Certainly that didn't mean that she was in love with Jet?

It was in that instant that Virginia finally realized it. She WAS in love with Jet. At this point she couldn't say exactly why, but she just knew that she wanted to be with him for the rest of her life. But now wasn't the time to dwell on that. Her father, and all of Filgaia, was in danger.

- - - -

****

Teefa's Last Words…

Yup, they sure are. That's what I like about Virginia, she sees beyond what Jet really is, and cares about him for who he is. And Sky's convinced that the return to the planet ref was from FF VII, but I didn't intend it.


	5. Generators & Demons

****

Generators & Demons

They continued upwards, soon arriving at the control room. There, they found Werner hard at work trying to fix the system. He didn't look at them, but he knew they were there just the same. "Do you all wonder why there is a Sea of Sand? It is actually because of the seven of us. When we tried to use the Yggdrasil to rejuvenate Filgaia, all we did was make more trouble. For although the environment around Yggdrasil became a fertile and green again, the rest of the world began to deteriorate even further. Now, the Prophets want to take it to the next level, and use this system to call a demon that will help them to transform the planet. We must stop them, but I am unable to hack into this system. Leehalt was always a great programmer, I remember Melody was often whining for him to do hers for her, just so she could go to town and pick up some more makeup. Those days seem like another lifetime now."

"Werner," Jet spoke up, "I can help you, can't I? I mean, if I indeed was created from Filgaia's lifeblood, I'm sure there's something I will be able to do in order to shut down this generator."

"That's a brilliant idea Jet. Just grab the big cable over there. Then, I want you to concentrate like you're gripping the Airget-lahm. Think of the Filgaia of the past, the one that was placed in your memory. For the planet's blood that is in your veins was from that of the past, before the Yggdrasil was first activated, when Filgaia was in much better shape than today," Werner told him.

So Jet grabbed the cable, and concentrated. He saw the Filgaia from the past come before him, a land much like the one surrounding Yggdrasil. When he had finished concentrating, he opened his eyes again. The generator whirred and hummed a bit, and then it shut down completely.

Werner stated, "That was great Jet. Now I want all of you to leave here at once. I will deal with Leehalt and the others. This is no longer your affair, take Virginia and get out of here." Then, without looking back, he ran through the door, and headed upstairs to the top chamber.

Virginia ran after him, with the others close behind. No matter what her father said, she wasn't going to let him do this on his own. Maybe it had been his fight in the past, but it wasn't now. This fight was for all the people on Filgaia, all of the people who deserved a future and not an early death.

At the top, she could see Leehalt again yelling at her father. Suddenly, he said something very strange. He was not only accusing Werner of holding him back, due to her father's brilliant mind and skills in the lab. Leehalt blamed Werner for taking Ekatrina from him. 'So, Leehalt was in love with Mother, and that's why he's so bitter about my father, just because she chose Daddy over him.'

"That was a long time ago Leehalt," reminded Werner, "None of this matters now. What matters is that you're trying to destroy the world, and I wish to help save it. If you step down, and allow things to continue as they are, I will spare your lives. I don't want to kill you if I don't have to, we've been through so much together. But I won't hold back if we fight one another either, Leehalt."

  
"We'll help you Daddy. The four of us will blaze a trail to the future on wings of fire. You can count on us to get the job done," Virginia said. She aimed her ARMs, and the others followed suit.

Werner yelled, "I thought I told you to get out of here. Run, while there's still time. I don't want to see my only child getting hurt in the course of this battle. It'll be too dangerous for you, so get out of here while you still have time. I won't be able to protect you and fight them at the same time."

Jet stepped forward. "You won't have to worry Werner. I will protect Virginia for you. No harm is going to come to her while we fight, even if I must give my life to assure that it is so."

"Such foolish sentiment," Leehalt muttered, "All it leads to is death. Defending one another even if you die in the process, that's just plain foolish. Look out for yourself alone, and you will be able to live a long life. But if you are worried about someone else too, you might just end up dying prematurely."

"I don't care what you say. I'm not going to listen to you. I know that even though I'm no more than a machine, I'm a whole lot more human than you perverted freaks will ever be," Jet yelled.

Melody stated, "But we don't want to be human. We only want to be perfect life forms. You can keep your little bout of humanity that you gained while with these fools, we'll take the bodies of demons."

Malik chuckled. "Besides, we're the ones who are going to live on. You, on the other hand, will die once Filgaia has been transformed, and you are no more than a foreign element to it."

"You will be the first to die," Leehault told Jet, "Your blood is that of the planet itself with human DNA thrown in for physical likeness. When the new Filgaia destroys the old, it will think of you as part of this planet, and you will be destroyed as well. Did I mention that the girl will be killed no to long after? I hope I did, so that I might give you that bit of bad news a second time."

"That's never going to happen! For we will defeat you and put an end to your scheme! The Yggdrasil is off, it's all over now. All that's left is to take care of you!" Virginia exclaimed.

With that, each person began to summon a Guardian to help them fight. Virginia called up Schturdark. Jet summoned Moor Gault. Gallows held up Grudiev. And finally, Clive brought in Fengalon. The powers of the four Elemental Guardians attacked the Prophets, knocking them all out.

Weakened by the attacks, the four teleported away. Virginia looked up at the generator and smiled. It was over at last, now they could live in peace once more.

She turned to Jet, to thank him for all of his help. But something was wrong. He was breathing heavily, and a heavy sweat cascaded down his face. Suddenly, he fainted.

Virginia ordered, "Gallows, you're the strongest, so carry him on your back! We've got to get him back to the cabin, so he can rest and recover as much as he needs."

- - - -

****

Teefa's Last Words…

Only the epilogue left now. Poor Jet, but at least he has Ginny to watch over him.


	6. Return to Normality

****

Return to Normality

When Jet opened his eyes, he saw that he was back in Werner's cabin. Clive and Gallows were sleeping on the floor - - with Gallows snoring so loudly that it was a wonder that anyone else could sleep. In the chair that stood next to the bed, he could see Virginia, sleeping while sitting up.

'What a nightmare,' he thought, 'I dreamt I was fighting the Prophets, and they were summoning a demon. I'd been told I was a machine, they ridiculed me, but Virginia was telling me how she still thought of me as a friend, even as I guarded her from all physical harm. Come to think of it, I rather liked the last part of it, but I can't say exactly why I do.' The young man blushed.

'She really shouldn't be sleeping like this, she'll get a stiff back,' he realized. Jet then picked up the young girl in his arms, and placed her on the bed. He then covered her up with the blanket so she wouldn't catch a cold. After seeing that she was comfortable, Jet lay down on the floor.

He whispered, "Sleep tightly Virginia. I don't know what my dream meant, but it gives me a really good feeling every time I think about it. I feel like I want to protect you forever."

* * *

Virginia woke up some time later, and found herself on the bed. 'Why am I here? Last thing I remember is that I was sitting in the chair, watching over Jet as he's always protecting me. If I'm laying on the bed, then where has Jet gotten to?' She looked on the floor, and saw him.

The young woman sat and watched him as he slept. It wasn't too much longer until he woke up. When he saw that she was also awake, he sat on the bed next to her. Jet couldn't quite understand it himself why he'd done this, but he was well aware of the blush on his face.

"Thank you," Virginia said, "For everything that you did for me. You were really brave back there at the Yggdrasil. I mean, you really knocked around Melody after she called me ugly. And Leehalt, he's gonna need some real bad healing after the attack you unleashed on him."

  
"What are you talking about Virginia? I never went to Yggdrasil. Last thing I remember was saving you from that canister that Leehalt launched at you in Nidhogg Pass," Jet stated.

Virginia asked, "So you can't remember all those things you said to me then? About how you wanted to protect me from every danger? And all those things we found about your past?"

Jet gave her a questionable look. "What exactly happened anyway? I can't remember anything about this. Is it possible that whatever in the canister that knocked me out could have done something to my memory? Not that I care, but if you're gonna bug me until I can answer you, I have no choice."

  
'He's being cold again,' she thought, 'I guess that the nanomachines have completely been destroyed by his body, and he's back to normal. And he can't remember what he did while under their influence either.' So she summarized their whole trip from the Nidhogg Pass, all the way up until the battle with the Prophets at the top of Yggdrasil. When Virginia had finished, she looked up at Jet to see his reaction to her story. A sad expression had come over his face, no doubt due to his identity.

"So, that stupid dream I had wasn't a dream at all. I really am no more than a machine. Tell me Virginia, if that's all I am, then why do you care about me?" he inquired.

She pulled him closer to her, so his head could lay peacefully on her left shoulder. Virginia told him, "Because. . .you're my friend. I don't care about some silly stuff like whether you're a human or not. You've been my friend for a long time now, and there's no way I'd be so shallow as to leave you now. This is the time that you're going to need me for emotional support over what you've found out."

Both of them were well aware of the blushes on their faces. Jet did have to admit that he'd felt peaceful lying up against her. Why was he feeling things like this? After all, he was only a machine.

But at that moment, he realized the truth. Although he was a machine, he was also a human being. And this girl meant more to him than life itself. He would protect her no matter what happened to them, even if he had to give his life to assure her safety. It was just like what he said while under the nanomachines' influence. This had to be the emotion that people called love.

Jet smiled. "Thank you Virginia. But you know that we've got to get going soon. There's no way that we'll be able to earn any money if we spend all our time in this stupid little shack."

"You're back to normal!" she exclaimed, "Oh Jet, you're back to normal. What a relief, it was beginning to get weird without you complaining about money or yelling at me for something or other."

Jet couldn't help but let out a laugh. She was always going to be this way, no matter what sort of problem they came across. It was true that they were complete opposites, but maybe that's why they got along so well. Each of their personalities and skills were able to make up for what the other one lacked. Something like that could help them greatly on further missions.

"Well, well, well, look at the lovebirds. So, when are you guys going to kiss?" asked Gallows.

Both he and Clive had woken up. Well, Gallows had got up and seen what was going on, and then he'd shook Clive awake. The two Drifters were staring at their very red comrades.

Jet told him, "Just shut up Gallows. I am not going to kiss her. And even if I was, I wouldn't be doing it in front of you." But the expression on his face betrayed his words.

Clive cleared his throat. "So now that everything has been cleared up, where are we going to go next? Are we going to go look for some more artifacts, or on a job to earn us some Gella."

"We'll see what we can find," Virginia decided, "We can decide what to do then."

  
They left the cabin, and headed back through the Nidhogg Pass. As they walked, Jet found himself acting even more protective of Virginia than he'd been before. 'Guess that I'm gonna have to get used to these new feelings. No complaints at that, at least I'll know that Virginia is safe.'

- - - -

****

Teefa's Last Words…

He needs her around to guard him mentally and emotionally, even as he guards her physically. Now to our thank you section. Ok, first to Media Vision for making this game. Then, to the sites that got me into Wild ARMs in the first place. And also to the people who read and enjoyed this story. You know, there isn't much outside impute with this one.


End file.
